No Wife, No Life Chapter 74

Memories of the past came rushing back.

Alex remembered how Harper had signed up for cooking classes just to learn how to make his favorite dishes.

He often stayed up late, which led to chronic stomach pain.

Harper had even visited a doctor to learn massage techniques. 

Whenever his stomach acted up, she would carefully press the right spots to ease his pain.

She had done so much for him.

But what about him? He knew almost nothing about Harper.

What did she like? What did she dislike? He was completely clueless.

"Alex, you really need to think about this," Kaitlyn said, frowning deeply and sighing heavily.

Meanwhile, Harper was in the bathroom, crouched on the floor, dry heaving but unable to throw up.

She just hated ham.

Every time she thought of ham, she felt a wave of nausea.

That year, her mother had just passed away, and Emily was brought back to The Orsini Villa.

From the moment they met, it was clear they would never get along.

Emily seemed delicate but was just as cunning as her mother.

At first, she pretended to be sweet and innocent, but later, she cozied up to Brad and badmouthed Harper in front of him.

It wasn't long before Brad started to despise Harper.

Emily claimed to love ham, so the housekeeper made a huge platter of it.

Emily ate all the ham and then tossed the empty plate in front of Harper, a mocking smile on her lips.

"You really think you're a lady of the Orsini family? You should be wandering around like a stray dog."

That was the first time Emily bared her fangs, declaring war on Harper.

From that day on, Harper never touched ham again.

Whenever she saw ham, she thought of Emily's disgusting face.

Of course, she never told anyone about this.

Feeling a bit better, Harper stood up, rinsed her mouth, and returned to the room.

"Harper, you okay?"

Kaitlyn asked with concern as she saw her return.

"I'm fine, just an old issue," Harper smiled faintly and sat back down.

About half an hour later, lightning flashed outside, and a storm was brewing.

Holden put down his chopsticks, glancing worriedly out the window.

"Harper, you should stay at The Lavien Mansion tonight. The weather's bad, and it's not safe to travel."

Before she could respond, Holden turned to Alex. "Alex, what do you think?"

Staying at The Lavien Mansion meant they would have to share a room.

Alex's eyes brightened slightly, and he nodded.

"Grandpa, I have some work that needs to be finished tonight, so I can't stay," Harper politely declined.

It wasn't appropriate for her to stay any longer.

"Harper, Alex agreed. You can do your work tomorrow," Kaitlyn pouted, trying to persuade her.

She wanted to seize any opportunity to bring them closer.

"Maybe next time. My stomach's acting up again, and there's no medicine here."

Hearing this, Holden and Kaitlyn didn't push further, just reminding them to be careful on the road.

Since Alex had had a couple of drinks, Harper drove them back.

The rain intensified, drumming loudly on the car.

"If you can't eat it, just refuse. Why force yourself?"

Alex leaned back in his seat, his eyes cold.

It was just a piece of ham. Why did she have to eat it?

"Do you always have to make yourself suffer?"

He didn't understand. For the past five years, Harper had always been like this.

If something couldn't be done, just don't do it. He never forced her.

Harper kept her eyes on the road, not even glancing at him.

"I wasn't doing it for you. I just didn't want Grandpa and Kaitlyn to see how fragile our marriage is. We've been together for five years, and you don't even know what I like or dislike. What do we look like to them?"

Five years, and he never cared about these things.

To him, Harper was just a capable assistant at work and a machine to satisfy his desires at home. He didn't need to know her preferences.

To him, she was just a cold, unfeeling machine.

He never realized that this machine was a person with blood and flesh, with her own emotions, needs, and likes.

"Of course, Mr. Lavien doesn't need to know these things. And you will never have any chance."

She spoke calmly, as if she had truly forgotten everything.

Alex remained silent.

Suddenly, a flash of lightning lit up the night sky, followed by a loud clap of thunder.

It felt like the end of everything.

"Mr. Lavien, where do you want to go?" Harper asked indifferently.

The office, the villa, or the apartment—wherever he went, it had nothing to do with her.

It used to be them, but now it was just him.

"The villa."

His voice was hoarse, like the murmur of someone who had drunk too much.

But it was just two drinks; he shouldn't be drunk.

Harper responded softly and drove towards the villa.

She had driven him many times before.

Whenever they attended events together, if Alex drank or was tired, he would call her to pick him up.

It felt like a replay, as if they were still going home together.

She would help him out of the car, into the room, run a bath for him, wait for him to finish, and then watch him go to bed before she slept.

But now, none of that would happen again.

The bitterness in his heart surged again, refusing to fade.

The weather was bad, and there weren't many cars on the road.

Soon, Harper drove down the familiar street.

A thousand feet ahead was Alex's villa.

They had lived there together for five years.

She knew every tree and bush, even the exact location of the trash cans at the corner.

But all of it was in the past, like a sealed memory, only alive in her mind.

The headlights illuminated the road, showing only the rain.

Suddenly, a figure appeared ahead.

She stood in the middle of the road, drenched.

Harper slammed on the brakes.

The tires screeched, and the car came to a sudden stop.

She looked up and saw Emily.

Emily waved at Alex inside the car, stumbling towards them.

Alex opened the door, grabbed an umbrella, and stepped out.

His face was stern, his deep eyes showing a hint of reluctance.

"What happened?"

She was soaked, like she had just been pulled out of the water.

"Alex, I was so worried about you. I wanted to wait for you to come back."

Her big eyes were wet, and she shivered from the cold.

Unable to help himself, Alex took off his coat and draped it over her shoulders.

"Alex, I think I have a fever. Can you take me to the hospital?"

Her face was pale, lips blue, and her hand gripping Alex's was ice-cold.

Alex nodded slightly.

"She's sick. I'll take her to the hospital."

His face was expressionless, his tone devoid of emotion.

Because Emily needed to go to the hospital, Harper had to get out of the car.